All Time

Sunday, September 17, 2017

[VADUZ] Call Me Vadoots

“You’re in Zürich?!” I told my
friend that I was just passing by and that I was going to Liechtenstein, to
which he replied, “Why does everyone go to Liechtenstein, there’s bloody
nothing to see there!” And I was, like, Meh. But I think he’s well aware that I
am just collecting countries here, so I really don’t give a damn. True enough,
I spent less than two hours in Vaduz. It feels somehow unfortunate, but when
there’s nothing to see, there’s nothing to see. Drop by, take photos, and then
move on with your life.

I was surprised to see all
prices displayed in CHF. Crossing over from Buchs in Switzerland where I
managed to book a relatively cheaper Airbnb place, I just had to tap my credit
card on the SBB ticket dispenser. Contactless. Convenient! Going back to
Feldkirch from Vaduz, I panicked a bit, but was reassured by a local passenger
that Euros are also accepted by the bus driver. The trip back to Austria took
around 50 minutes, with gorgeous views of the mountains ubiquitous in the
region.

Schaan appears to be where
most of the transpo links are made. Wikitravel said that walking from there to
Vaduz takes only 20 minutes, although I bet it takes more than that. You might
want to take that stroll, though, if you want to maximize your day here. Given
the shortage of tourist attractions in the capital, you might as well do a
combo of both places. A one-way ride on Bus 11 won’t take more than 10 minutes.
Once you get off at Vaduz Post, almost everything you want to see will be within a
500m radius.

The St. Florin’s Cathedral is
right there at the corner, hard to miss with its bell tower and clocks on
all four sides. But I guess the highlight of the trip will always be the Schloss
Vaduz. They say that the prince of Liechtenstein still lives there up to the
present day, which probably explains why the castle is off-limits to tourists.
You cannot enter his majesty’s palace, but yes, you can come close enough.
There are hiking trails and alleys leading uphill that you can follow, complete
with signs pointing you to the right direction.

I opted not to go hiking today
because I just don’t have the strength. I mean, you can see the castle from
down below anyway wherever you are in the area. Why the need for a close-up? I
think the reward you will get if you end up there is the panoramic view of the
town below, which I can only imagine to be mystical given the mountains
surrounding the city on all sides. Oh yes, the mountains. So majestic! It was
the same case in Buchs, but then again these two towns are neighbors so it’s
not really that surprising.

If I remember it correctly, it
is also the Rhine that serves as a natural border between Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
Even then, the two are culturally linked, as well as financially given how the
principality also uses Swiss Francs as its currency. I digress. What else did I
see in Vaduz? Oh wait, let’s talk about language first. I’ve been pronouncing
it forever as Vadoozzz when in fact it should be Vadoots. I’m not sure if
Liechtenstein has its own local language, but it’s still pretty much part of
the German-speaking sprachbund.

St. Florin’s was open to
tourists today. The cathedral is not big at all, but has a long history dating
back to the 1200’s. I guess the medieval kingdoms here developed during the
same time period. Feldkirch is also rich with history from the 1200’s and 1300’s.
Back to the cathedral, there is a pipe organ of sorts inside, as well as two or
three stained glass art pieces. If you want to seek some refuge from the cold temperature
outside, then now is the time to reconnect with God. Oh dear, I’m such a user.
Sue me.

You can get a souvenir
passport stamp at the tourist office, which is along the same pedestrian
street. It costs CHF3/EUR3 (~PHP165/~PHP180). I told myself that it was a waste
of money but I found myself in the queue anyway, and the next thing I knew the
lady was already taking my three euros and stamping my passport. The stamp is
cute, it even has a red crown! And that’s all I saw in Vaduz. Wow. If you love
hiking, I guess you’d love not just Liechtenstein, but the neighboring Austrian
and Swiss towns as well.